Nikolay Gumilev
- The tip of willow tree was blackened..., by Rupert Moreton
- The White Willow, by Burton Raffel and Alla Burago
(The white willow was black, up on the hill...)
«A simian profile / With slits for eyes; / Dumpling lips and a potato nose: / Neither a girl nor a goat. Hair like a fishtail; / No bust, more like a frying pan; / And growing from the chin — / It’s terrible, I know — a beard. Choppy gestures, long feet, / Hands twisted backward...»
«Family — a mess of acquaintances — whiners, / An insufferable carnival of fools. / From work, from friends, from rotten politics / The brain is endlessly assailed. / Take books — garbage and filth: / One cat scratches, / Another licks, breeds filth / And mews sensually... Peter ...»
«All trousers are cut in the same way, / Same goes for whiskers, overcoats, even pots. / I am the same as everyone on the street / And blend in completely at the corner... But I would not trade in my personality / To become a member of it all, or it of me — / I wrap myself entirely in in...»
«Tightly coiled, like a snake it sits / In my very heart, weaving spells / Or murmurs for days on end / Like a dove on my white windowsill. In the sparkle of hoarfrost a gleam, / In the carnation's slumber a hint, / And secretly, surely it leads / From all joy and peace of mind. It can ...»